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Sales at it’s simplest is a communication process says Zig Ziglar, one of the world’s leading sales training coaches. According to Zig Ziglar, you need a process to be successful in sales.

The sales process has a beginning and an end. You’re somewhere on that spectrum. So is your client. Find out where your client is in the process and go there. Don’t try and carry on the process from your point if the client is not in the same area.

Should You Use a Sales Process?

You need a sales process if you’re serious about being a successful salesperson. A process allows you to know where you and the client are at. It allows you to make sure both of you are on the same page in the process.

Be Logical and Client-Oriented

A logical, client-oriented sales process will lead you to a logical closing where you’re not fighting with the client.

Your sales process will help you identify if your prospect is receiving the message that you think you are delivering. Often times, the customer hears something different than what you actually say.

And you always, always, always need to listen for more than words. Listen for meanings of words (intent). You’ll get in trouble if you don’t.

Here are the Zig Ziglar Selling Principles

1. Selling is a process, not an event.

This means there is a beginning, a middle and an end. Do you know where your customer is in the process? Do you know where you are in the process? If the answers to these questions don’t match, then you won’t sell.

When you’re at one end of the process and you’re client is at the other end of the process, it can be frustrating for the both of you. This frustration can often kill the deal.

To reiterate the point, you need to meet the client where he’s at. You’ll only know where he’s at, if your listening to the words and the intent.

2. You make more money solving problems (needs, issues, concerns) than you do selling product.

So you need to find out your prospects problems. Then solve them. Simple, right?

3. People have their own reasons for doing things. They don’t do things for your reasons.

Align your sales process with your clients reasons, not yours.

4. Learn more about your prospect than about your product.

You don’t need to be best friends, but you need to know them as people. You need to know their buying trigger, their interests, where they’re at in the sales process, and their buying points.

If you haven’t already done so, implement a sales process in your organization. If you already have a process, work on lining up with the client on where he or she is at in the process. Zig Ziglar says that as you do this you will close more sales.

The bottom line is that if you’re not closing sales, you’re not making money. It won’t be long before you’re out of a job. Unfortunately, many salespeople don’t know how to close the deal. Or they try to close too early.

Did you know that 4% of salespeople make 60% of all sales? Why do only 4% make so many of the sales? Because they ask for the sale more than six times in a close.

But you can’t close the sale, if you don’t first establish yourself as the solution to the prospect’s problems. You have to ask questions to first find out the problem and then to help the client see how you are the solution to the problem.

If people don’t trust you, they won’t buy. This is the number one reason why people don’t buy. People probably don’t think you’re a liar. But they probably don’t have enough information to fully believe that your product is the solution to their problem.

They bottom line is that you can’t close until you have established sufficient value in the client’s mind. Don’t do it too early. If you do, the client won’t buy. You know how it is on the buying side. If you don’t see the value, no matter how persuasive the salesperson, you’re not going to buy.

So Zig Ziglar, one of the world’s leading success coaches says that you must “Start with your most valuable point”. This is the biggest selling point for the client. Show how your product can solve the prospects most pressing problem.

Once you’ve started with your most valuable point, you can start adding trial closes: How do you feel about what you’ve heard so far? Are you interested in saving money? When would you like to start saving money? These types of questions will help you get inside the mind of the customer and help you understand what kinds of questions you need to address.

Ziglar also says, “When the client says no they are not going to change their minds. They make new decisions based on new information.” What does this mean? It means that when the customer says “No”, it’s because they don’t have enough information to say yes. You must provide them with that additional information so that they can say yes.

Persistence really does pay. If you really believe you have a solution to their problem, you will persist until they understand what you have. Hone your closing skills and you’ll find yourself rising to the top of your profession. Zig Ziglar has many more programs on selling and personal development that will help you in your personal and professional aspirations.

The Auto University Defined

I don’t know if Zig Ziglar was the first to coin the phrase “Auto University”, but he’s definitely one of the strongest proponents of it. In fact, he claims, “It’s the most important university in America.” I agree with him.

Naturally, the Auto University’s classroom is your car. If you have a CD, tape, or MP3 player, then you have all of the equipment you need to enroll in Auto University. Auto University will teach you some of the most important skills you need to be successful at your job.

Is Auto University for you?

If you’re like a lot of Americans, much of your commute time is spent listening to music or other programs. While their entertainment value may be high, they’ll have no effect on your long-term success.

If you’re interested in a mediocre life, then the Auto University is not for you - keep listening to the mind-numbing drivel spewing from most of America’s airwaves.

So if you want to join the highest ranks of your profession, start your own collection of motivational and skills-oriented CDs or tapes.

When’s the Best Time to Listen?

How about every time you get in the car? If you’re a regular professional, you should have the Auto University going every minute of your commute.

A recent study by IBM finds that “45% of all drivers surveyed report traffic congestion increases their stress levels”. How about turning that stress into something more productive, like learning a new skill? By spending your traffic time listening to successful audio programs, you could become an expert in your chosen area very quickly.

If you’re a sales professional, you’ll find plenty of time to listen to audio programs between appointments. As you learn vital selling skills, you’ll find yourself closing more deals and with increased success. Find the best programs and listen to them until you have completely assimilated them into your way of selling.

You’ll be more excited going into a sales appointment when you know you’re going to try a new sales technique you just learned on the drive over. In fact, the best salespeople hone their sales skills on downtime in between appointments.

What Should You Listen To?

There are a lot a so-so audio programs out there. Lots of self-proclaimed business experts. Look for the world’s best. Don’t settle for imposters. Here are some names to start with: Jim Rohn, Napoleon Hill, Tony Robbins, Jay Abraham, Denis Waitley, Earl Nightingale, Brian Tracy, and Zig Ziglar.

Remember to keep learning or else you’ll stagnate. The Auto University will keep you fresh and up-to-date.

Jim Rohn once said, “Formal education will earn you a living. Self-education will gain you a fortune. You decide how much fortune by how much self-education you get.” What are you doing to increase your fortune? Enroll in Auto University today.

In his household Zig Ziglar was the only one who liked to play golf. He tells the following story about one hole he played with his less than enthusiastic son.

On one golfing outing, Zig Ziglar’s son found himself on the green with a chance at Birdie, and perhaps more importantly, with a chance to beat his dad at a hole.

With only a short distance to the hole, Zig Ziglar lined his son up. His son was able to sink the ball for birdie. His son jumped for joy. Next, Zig Ziglar stepped up to his own ball to try for birdie.

Zig Ziglar was also lined up for an easy Birdie. He thought about missing the shot, but knew this would only be a hollow victory for his on-looking son.

Zig Ziglar wondered if his son had been pulling for him, even though it would mean that his son wouldn’t win the hole. His son said that he always pulled for him.

Zig Ziglar’s son demonstrated pure love for his father. He pulled for him because it would be for his father’s benefit to sink the putt.

Zig says we can develop this pure love with his H.E.A.R.T. acronym:

Honesty

Empathy

Attitude - for you, your prospects and your profession

Reserves - Physical, spiritual and mental

Toughness - learning to love is tough.

In expanding this acronym, Zig Ziglar explains that as a salesperson your values need to be higher than any other professional’s. When you’re in the profession of persuading, you need to have the interest of the prospect at heart.

If you have the right attitude, the right spirit, you are convinced of what you’re doing and you have love in your heart, you’ll pull for people to buy your product for their benefit.

You need this kind of love as a salesperson.

One of Zig Ziglar’s most famous quotes is, “People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care about them.”

Learn to want your prospects to buy because you know they win with your product. Communicate with your feelings and beliefs.

The minute you start pulling for them to buy for their benefit, you become more professional, more effective, more loving and you sell more. And you’ll be able to sell them again and again and again. Before long, they’ll send you to their friends and relatives

You want your customer to be the big winner. When you learn to pull for her, you’ll be well on your way to becoming the person you want to be. Put your H.E.A.R.T. right with a little self-evaluation and self-correcting.

In his Podcast series “21 Great Ways To Double Your Productivity”, Brian Tracy teaches how to set priorities with the “ABCDE Method”.

You will find the principles discussed in this article simple to implement in your life. The ABCDE Method by Brian Tracy is hands-down one of the most effective time management methods anywhere.

Learning to pick your most important task and working on that task until it is complete is the most important time management principle you can learn. The ABCDE Method will help you to identify your highest value tasks before you start working. Identifying these high value tasks before you start working is imperative to your success.

In order for you to determine which task you should be working on, or not working on, Brian Tracy says that you need to think about the consequences of doing or not doing the task. An important task is a task that can have major consequences whether it is done or not.

All highly productive people constantly think about potential consequences of the tasks they need to perform as they plan. Then they choose to work on the tasks that will have the greatest consequences.

The three steps of Brian Tracy’s Successful ABCDE Method:

1. Make a list of all of your To Do’s.

2. Label each item with an A, B, C, D, or E.

An “A” item represents something that you must do. These items have serious consequences. These are your key tasks. Work on these first.

A “B” item is “Should Do” but is not as important as an “A” item. There are only mild consequences to not completing these tasks. The consequences are only short-lived.

C’s are nice to do, but not essential to do. Your long-term success will not be affected at all by these tasks.

Remember that you should never work on a “B” when an “A” still exists on your list. The same goes for “C” items. Don’t work on these until all of the “B” tasks are complete.

A “D” task is a task you delegate. You need to delegate as much as possible to partners or coworkers who can do that particular task as well or better than you.

“E” stands for eliminate. You can eliminate these tasks and there will be no consequences.

If you want to free yourself to work on your A and B tasks you really need to discipline yourself to get rid of all tasks that can be done by others and to eliminate all non-essential tasks.

Lastly…

3. Organize your “A” tasks by priority.

Place the number 1 by the most important task, the number 2 by the next important task, and so on: A1, A2, etc. Then immediately start working on A1 and work on it until it is complete.

If you truly want to double your productivity, you would be wise to adapt the ABCDE Method into your daily planning. Brian Tracy is a master at what he teaches, as demonstrated by his own success.

This article is based on another fantastic Brian Tracy Podcast: “21 Great Ways To Double Your Productivity - Number 5.”

The first thing to understand is that ALL of your tasks fall into one of four categories:

1. Urgent AND Important Tasks

You have to complete these tasks immediately. These are in your face. These are things like phone calls and meetings. You can’t put them off without causing serious problems.

These are the tasks on which people spend most of their time.

2. Important BUT NOT Urgent Tasks

According to Brian Tracy, completing these tasks will have the greatest possible long-term benefits in your life.

The tasks in this category include personal renewal, physical fitness and exercise, updating your skills, and spending time with your family.

These can be put off until later, but resist the temptation. According to Brian Tracy, these tasks can have the most long term impact on your life.

Mark my words, if you don’t work on the Important BUT NOT Urgent Tasks now, the come back to bite you in the butt. Some tasks in this category are term papers for school and reports for your boss.

3. Urgent BUT NOT Important Tasks

The tasks in this category include telephone calls, coworkers dropping in, and conversations about TV programs and what you did last night.

Brian Tracy says that these tasks will have negative effects on your success. Don’t delude yourself into thinking this type of work is important work.

The opposite is in reality the truth. These tasks are great time-wasters. In fact, they’re often great killers of careers. Don’t work on tasks in this arena.

The greatest time wasters of all are those that are:

4. Neither Urgent Nor Important

Run from these tasks. They’re utterly ineffectual; they have no consequences. When you’re at work don’t read the newspaper, or call home to shoot the breeze. You’ll contribute nothing to the company’s bottom-line and you won’t further your own ambitions.

To summarize…

Make sure that you’re first working on the “Most Urgent and Important”. Then move into the “Important but Not Urgent” Tasks. You increase your productivity by refusing to do things that are not important at all.

You should always be asking yourself: What are the potential long-term potential consequences of doing this task?

When you answer this question, you’ll know what to work on.

In Brian Tracy’s Podcast entitled “21 Great Ways To Double Your Productivity - Number 11″, Brian speaks about “Practicing Single-Handling Key Tasks.”

Dale Carnegie, one of the richest men in the world, attributed much of his success, and the success of those working with him, to this one success technique. That’s a pretty lofty claim.

How about boosting your own productivity by 50% in just the first day? That’s what Brian Tracy promises.

So, what is Single-Handling Tasks?

The essence of this success secret is to work on your most important task until it is 100% complete. According to Brian Tracy, there are three easy steps:

1. Make a list of everything you have to do.

2. Pick the item on the list that represents the highest use of your time.

3. Begin to work on that task, and that task alone, until it is 100% complete.

Two Keys of Success

Brian Tracy says that the two keys to success are:

1. Focus

2. Concentration

Here’s how you’ll benefit from Single-Handling Your Key Tasks

Brian Tracy says that single-mindedly working on your task, without diversion or distraction, will contribute more to your success than any other habit you will ever develop. Wow!

Don’t fall into the trap of laying your work aside unfinished. Brian Tracy says that you will increase the time spend on laid aside work by 500% (or 5 times) 500%! Who has that kind of time? But we all do it.

The potential upside is well worth it. If you work on the task until completion you will increase your own output by 80%. This is why Brian Tracy says it is “one of the great secrets of time management and high productivity.”

And you can acquire this habit easily with a little bit of practice and persistence.

Soon you’ll reap the following benefits:

1. You’ll find yourself at the top of your field and pay-scale.

2. You’ll get an endorphin rush by completing your major tasks. This rush will give you a feeling of well-being, happiness, and your self-esteem will increase.

Try this method today and see how much your productivity increases. You’ll soon have the attention of your boss (in a good way!).